In the past, various types of map holders have been provided with absolutely no means for accurately showing the point of one's present location at the moment while driving a car.
If the map is marked with a writing tool in order to eliminate the problem described above, this makes it difficult to use the map later. For example, the maps having highlighted routes, as those provided by Travel Clubs, may be used only for those routes as intended by highlighting. Prior art solutions were often cumbersome and inconvenient to use.
The following prior art is known to the applicant:
U.S. Pat. No. 1,710,555: Tascarella PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 2,787,070: Idoine PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 3,925,918: Pelin PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,071,174: Weiner PA0 U.S. Pat. No. 4,477,254: Yokayama
All these references were issued in class 40 of the US classification of inventions. Tascarella's map holder is the closest by its inventive concept to this invention, however it does not permit a full visibility of the route; its slide member covers the map, and its pointer can move in only one axis at a time. Other prior art devices are cumbersome and inconvenient to use and lack the means for accurately showing the point of one's actual location. Determining present whereabouts using these devices was quite troublesome.